Pretty But Unpretty
by Ichibayashi
Summary: The entire action had left her stumped. Elphaba felt as if she would soon question what she knew about the blond simply for a comment. While it may have been a comment, that in itself impacted her in ways she'd rather seclude off. While appearance was not Elphaba's forte, tonight Galinda would make her see the significance of it. (Inspired by Glee's Pretty/Unpretty Mash-Up)


Elphaba had ran. And run she did. She ran straight from the girls' dormatory, past Crage Hall and the many puzzled faces, familiar or not down to the depths of Suicide Canal and thankfully without a hitch. The world just whizzed by as the only thing that drove her on was the sound of her pounding heartbeat and distinct taste of cooper blood on her tongue. Once she'd caught her breath and settled down onto grass, she unleashed the bubbling thoughts from before over her mind. The surrealness of it all was simply overwhelming for no apparent reason. It was terrifyingly disturbing how just a few simple words could make the one thing that alienated herself from others into.. into something _beautiful._ Beautiful. Beautiful? For the first time in her life, Elphaba Thropp was called.. beautiful? Despite her tremendous knowledge of thousands of diction, the term itself felt foreign to her ears, especially when used to describe... her. Was she.. beautiful? What beauty could she see that Elphaba could not?

Elphaba slightly retreated into herself as the rushing waters below lapped from the river's edge, sending droplets haywire near her bare shins. Despite the tiny pricks they sent as a few plotted her, she still sat deathly still at a place where she could gaze over into the water, but was as far away as to not fall in if circumstances were right. Long blades of grass swayed softly on the cool breeze, tickling her arms and legs.

But then perhaps was Galinda mocking her by beginning this relationship- this _friendship_ all along? Using her _bodacious_ charm so to say to squirm underneath Elphaba's skin, coax her to a vulnerable state then leisurely raze her from within? And what can be more ironic than to say that such a parasitic nature so vile and uncouth is shunned nevertheless accepted for society. Yet if so.. Why did Elphaba let her do so in the first place? Why did Galinda wordlessly motion the dance at the OzDust ball for her, drawing all attention from the ridiculous hat the woman wore to the fact that Galinda of all people was associating with the 'green bean' of Shiz? Was it Pity? Sympathy? An Apology? Elphaba didn't want nor receive any of those. She could certainly handle herself without the help of some haughty, self-centered socialite. ..Why let anyone in if they'd only scowl in disgust? Then... For what reason did she reveal the meaning behind the sacred emerald bottle of hers to Galinda? And if she really did want to crush Elphaba.. why did her words just earlier ago sound sincere?... That unfathomed voice that held a conviction, soft adoration.. and.. amazement? Would Galinda in fact, **_truly_**, say those words to Elphaba? That she was... For a moment, there was almost a sense of.. of simple sincerity as the scene replayed within her head. Well, Almost.

"Tch.. Beautiful.. Nothing more than a polite euphemism. For what reason should I be fretting over such petty simplicity?"

That fact for the matter was as evident as air. For the rare few times Elphaba actually tried to interact within the social society she witnessed firsthand through whispers and hushed sneers how cruel Galinda and everyone else for the matter could be. Tiny bits of information would be soaked up and contorted before saturated with lies. Soon or later rumors would spread like wildfire. Like a dual bladed dagger you'll never know which side is the sharp one until your bleeding or worst, dead. In fact if Elphaba was religious she'd probably be able to give hours worth of homilies on the two-faced nature of the social society. Wouldn't Nessa just swoon.

But then just like a fault on a smooth plain there was the uncertainty. That incessant nagging feeling of.. some sort of reassurance.. That Galinda could be (_Oz forbid_) trusted. Elphaba placed a hand to her chin in question, attentive to her thoughts and the calming scenery alike. Nightfall was approaching fast meaning the return to the dorm room and Galinda. But there still was much thought to be subjected into this. What if Galinda was being truthful? Not once had there been a look of repulsion on her face as she twiddled with Elphaba's hair or jostled her about their room. Though for Elphaba, that was an entire different story. A sound of amusement escaped Elphaba's lips but in doing she caught sight of something pink glistening in her reflection on the water. Hesitantly she reached a hand up to her hair and felt the round object of question. The rose pin. With extreme caution, Elphaba guided herself closer towards the water's edge to view herself fully.

There she was, although somewhat warped, in one piece. Long sharp nose, angular face, bark brown eyes, long thick hair and... the green. But then... She spotted it. The vibrant coral rose tucked behind her left ear and the entire scene began to meld together into... into.. To think that _that_... this was her, Elphaba Thropp, was simply preposterous. "Ludicrous.. It couldn't be.." But it _was_.  
And she felt the rose, her hair and all of her face and saw how.. different it made her look. Maybe even close to... beautiful? Was this the beauty that Galinda saw?

* * *

The evening rays of scarlet, crimson and copper soon dimmed into midnight blue, violets and aquas. Long before had the nocturnal wanderers crept from their hiding areas, venturing out into another night of mystery. Elphaba had returned to the dorm shortly before dark, avoiding the lurking guardsmen by all costs and now stood in a dimly lit room where a bundled figure lay sprawled sleeping on their respected side. This was a relief, as she did not want the ensuing embarrassment of returning to an awake Galinda with a ship full of questions to bombard her with. The next hour or so was spent washing up, preparing for bed, (braiding her hair, making the bed, changing clothes, etc) reading and then staring at the given rose pin for a.. questionable amount of time. She sat with her back to her wooden headboard, basking in the light of a lantern and observing the synthetic material. Such a thing like this caused physical attraction, in even someone like her? She simply didn't understand.

"Miss Galinda."

"Miss, Galinda."

No response.

"Galinda?"

"Mhmm.. " The following sluggish shuffling from underneath blankets indicated the other had awoke.

"Uh... You, happened to forget your rose pin."

"Mhmm.. Keep it.. It make you pretty.. But.. Yu don't need it tho.. You already pretti... Hmshsmznmn..."

"... Uh, well, thank you... Fresh dreams.."

Had that been the answer all along? Had the rose pin been some sort of variable, a stepping stone- a _catalyst_ to show her _her_... beauty? Had Galinda really thought she was pretty? Elphaba? Elphaba glanced over once more to verify that her roommate had fallen back asleep, which was obvious by the sounds of light snoring and the slight rise and fall of the sheets. For a few moments more, Elphaba fiddled with the flower between her thumbs for no reason. She was.. already pretty? Never would she admit it aloud, but this time the nagging feelings was replaced with a more fluttery sensation that would only be described as something similar to... relief. Gladness? Joy? Not that any of that mattered. Galinda could've been murmuring sleep-induced jabber or something. Yet in spite of herself she allowed a tiny smile she'd rather wish to be non-existent spread onto her face.

* * *

Hello Everyone! Happy Belated New Year! I wish you all a new year filled with more enjoyable fanfics and good happenings in life. I do apologize for the very, very late update for Serendipity, but please do not fret. I plan later this year to continue. Delays are solely on the reason that my laptop isn't.. very well. My screen has been wrecked and now I am left to writing stories on the ios notepad.

On the bright side, I've fallen in love with the Wicked fandom. I don't see why I never found it before.. People need to show me where I can get up-to-date with these things. (It's sad considering Wicked was made back in 2003, and I found out about it only 10 years later) Anyways, I hope that you all have enjoyed this one shot. And if I can I'll try to sneak more fanfics here and there until my laptop is saved, thus allowing me to update Serendipity. Thanks again to all the readers and followerers.

Ichibayashi, Out.


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